Coping
by ultimategleek
Summary: Sequel to 'Please Don't Hurt Me': Santana is ready to go home, but is she ready to move on? She's haunted by her father and she's not sure she can take it. Can she be helped before it's too late? Rated M for adult themes.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey everyone! So I got a few requests to do a sequel to 'PDHM' and as promised here it is! :D I aim to please, and hopefully this will be up to scratch!Here's the first chapter I hope you all like! Enjoy! :)  
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**Chapter 1**

Her eyes flickered open as a loud thud echoed through the house. Sitting up slowly, she strained her ears for any noise. Her heart was pounding in her chest and she could feel herself beginning to tremble as she lifted herself off the bed.

The room was dark, save the moonlight creeping through the window, illuminating the terrified teen's long dark hair as she approached and opened her bedroom door. As she emerged onto the landing, she heard another heart stopping crash from downstairs. Stepping swiftly into another room, she grabbed one of her father's golf clubs.

She crept along the hallway, straining her ears for the slightest disturbance. As she reached the top stair, she peered into the dark hallway below, searching. The house was quiet once more but curiosity got the better of her as she began quietly down the stairs. Reaching the bottom, she decided it best to leave the lights off, and headed towards the kitchen. She raised the club above her head before swinging the door open.

The room was empty. She let out a deep sigh of relief, that didn't last long, as she continued her journey towards the living room. She failed to notice the back door, which had a smashed window and looked to have been forced open.

On entering the living room, her heart stopped. There, standing in the darkness on the other side of the room, was the man she had feared for most of her life. He took a small step towards her and by the light of the moon, she could see a small smirk on his lips and pure hatred in his dark brown eyes. At 6'4", he towered over her, and she couldn't bring herself to move as she stared up into his dark eyes.

He started towards her again and the moonlight caught on something he held in his hand. It sparkled silver and menacing in the soft light. A knife, she realised, and suddenly her body reacted, and she turned to run. Horror struck, as she realised that the door she had come through was now shut and wouldn't budge. Turning, she pressed her back firmly against the door, trying to get as far from the man as she could, but he was almost upon her now.

"Santana?" She looked at the man in front of her. It was not he who had spoken, but she was sure somebody had called her name. The voice was slightly distorted, but still sounded very familiar to the girl. "Santana?" There it was again. This time there was no mistaking it. It was Brittany. But the girl wasn't anywhere to be seen. Santana remembered just in time, that her father was fast approaching, and she just managed to duck out of the way as he swung his arm towards her.

Raising the club once more, she mustered up all her strength and aimed a blow directly at his head. The club made contact and a sickening crack reverberated around the room. But he didn't even react to the blow, he just stepped towards her again, the grin on his face widening. Santana took another step back and crashed the club into him again. Again he took no notice and suddenly he was upon her knocking the club out of her hand and raising the knife. She heard herself scream as he brought the knife down and plunged it deep into her chest. Blood began to seep out of the wound, and her father just stood there laughing. But then, he was coming back, knife in hand, ready to strike again-

"Santana!" The Latina's eyes shot open, as the voice that she had heard moments ago, seemed to have been magnified. She was in the hospital bed, Brittany at her side.

Her sheets had been thrown off and her gown stuck to her sweat covered body. She was shaking uncontrollably and couldn't bring herself to stop. Her hair was plastered to her glistening face and her injuries pounded, meaning she must have been moving.

She turned her head slowly to the side, where Brittany was sitting, holding tightly onto her hand, fear and worry clearly showing on her face. Santana immediately felt comforted, just by seeing the blonde, and she felt herself stop shaking.

"W-What h-happened?" Santana asked shakily, failing to keep her voice under control. She tried a weak smile, but only succeeded in grimacing and choking down a sob.

"You were having a nightmare San!" Brittany mumbled softly, tears glistening in her ocean blue eyes, "You were thrashing and screaming and you wouldn't wake up." The blonde sniffled sadly, tightening her grip on the Latina's hand, as realisation hit the brunette. Letting out a shaky breath, Santana closed her eyes for a moment. Immediately, the image of her father popped into her mind again, and her eyes snapped open. She felt the tears come, just thinking about the man made her want to run far, far away. Before they could fall however, there was a light knock on the door.

A moment later, a short, blonde haired nurse entered the room, wheeling a tired looking Maria Lopez in front of her. The nurse had a very fake smile plastered on her face, as she wheeled Mrs Lopez up to the side of her daughter's bed and turned and left without a word. Maria just stared sadly at her daughter for a few moments, taking in all the marks and bruises that had been left on her face and body by the man she loved. Tears began to form in her eyes as she took in the damage, but she swiped them away swiftly, determined to stay strong for her daughter's sake.

"Hey" she said softly, after a few minutes of the silent staring contest between mother and daughter, adding a sad but loving smile. Santana couldn't manage a response, so she just swallowed hard, holding back the tears that were threatening to spill over. Unable to look her mother in the eye, she looked down and focused on hers and Brittany's intertwined fingers, as her mother began to talk.

"How are you feeling?" Mrs Lopez began, not really knowing what to say.

"I'm okay" Santana murmured, not looking up.

"I'm- I'm glad to hear that. I was really worried." Mrs Lopez sniffled a little before going on, "Your fath-"

"He is _not _my father!" Santana almost yells, glaring at her mother.

"Okay, I'm sorry," Mrs Lopez apologises, "Carlos isn't awake yet. It's- It's still pretty bad." Her voice cracked slightly. She still loved him, even after all he had done. And she didn't like to see her family like this, so broken and hurt.

"Good" Santana replied coldly, returning her gaze to her hand, which Brittany was now rubbing softly with her thumb. Mrs Lopez' eyes widened at the girl's lack of emotion towards her own father, but before she could reply, a new voice interrupted her.

"Ah Miss Lopez! I'm glad to see you are awake! I have some good news!" Santana looked up to see a middle-aged doctor standing at the foot of her bed. He was holding some papers and grinning like an idiot. Santana resisted the urge to roll her eyes at the sudden optimism in the room. "It's time to go home!" he announced cheerfully, waving the papers he had in his hand, in the air, "I have you're discharge papers right here! And yours too, Mrs Lopez!" he exclaimed, turning towards Maria and smiling widely. "All you need to do is sign, and you're good to go!"

Santana looked first to her mother, who was trying her best to smile back at the overly-chirpy doctor, and then to Brittany, who was looking ecstatic and she gave her Latina friend an overexcited hug. Brittany was visibly bouncing as the doctor wheeled Mrs Lopez out into the hall to make any arrangements and sign the papers.

"Isn't this great, San?" Brittany squealed, racing around the room, gathering all the magazines, CD's and stuffed animals that now belonged to Santana since being admitted to hospital, most given to her by the bubbly blonde beside her. Santana couldn't contain the grin that appeared on her face at the sight of the blonde's excitement. She made to get up, but was swiftly reminded of all her injuries as her body started to ache.

Her recently relocated elbow throbbed in its sling and sharp bursts of pain were shooting up the same arm, which now had two breaks. Luckily, her concussion had subsided and other than a light headache, it gave her no trouble. The same could not be said for her right leg, broken in three places and bound in a thick cast. Groaning loudly, Santana flopped back onto the bed.

Brittany was beside her in seconds, helping her into clean clothes and pulling her wheelchair, which she would now be confined to for a considerable amount of time, from a corner and wheeling it in front of the Latina. Santana eyed the chair wearily, not making a move towards it. Brittany giggled softly at the other girl's hesitation and without warning, she picked up the Latina carefully, and placed her into the chair.

Santana let out a deep breath as she hit the chair. Looking at it with distaste, she tried to rid herself of all the feelings she was having in that moment, but she couldn't help but feel weak and trapped. She was vulnerable now and it terrified her. Brittany's hand on her shoulder offered her enough comfort to bring her out of her thoughts, at least for now.

"Let's go San" Brittany said softly, kissing the top of the Latina's head tenderly. Then she turned the chair around and headed towards the door.

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><p><strong>So yay or nay?<strong>

**I'm still not so sure about this story so i hope this was okay! I'd like to know if I should continue or not so please let me know what you thought! Also, if I do continue, i was thinking that i might introduce some more of the characters from the show!I dont know if thats a good idea so please let me know!**

**Ok so reviews are great and all that blah blah blah...**

**Till next time! :)  
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	2. Chapter 2

**Hey y'all! So thanks for the positive response to the first chapter! Here's chapter 2! Some people said they wanted a bit more Brittana fluff! Well your wish is my command! :) Enjoy!  
><strong>

**Chapter 2**

The cold air bit at Santana's skin as the main doors out of the hospital slid open in front of her. She couldn't hold back the shiver that took over her body as they exited the warmth of the building and emerged into the starless night. Even with the low temperatures, Santana couldn't help but feel relieved to finally be outside again after almost three weeks in a hospital bed.

"Girls! Over here!" Santana and Brittany turned their heads simultaneously to see a tall blonde haired, blue eyed woman waving at them from a car. Brittany's smile widened at the sight of her mother and she began to wheel Santana towards the car.

"Wait!" The call came from behind them, and Santana looked over her shoulder and spotted her mother coming towards them. Santana had completely forgotten about her because she was too caught up in the feelings of hope and freedom that she had begun to feel since exiting the huge, formidable building behind her. Looking up reassuringly at the blonde, Brittany turned around Santana's wheelchair to face her mother. "I thought I had missed you" Mrs Lopez panted, trying to catch her breath after sprinting across the parking lot. The older Latina knelt down in front of her daughter and took her hand. Santana tried her best not to make eye contact, but it was hard with her mother straight in front of her.

"Sanny, I want you to come home," she said softly, rubbing small circles on her daughter's hand, "I _need _you to come home." Maria Lopez looked at her daughter with pleading, pain filled eyes. "I need my baby back" she sniffled slightly, "I'm taking out a restraining order on Carlos, he won't be able to come near us, _mija_." Santana finally managed to look at her mother. She could see the pain in her eyes, but it wasn't even close to matching the pain in Santana's heart.

"I can't. I'm sorry." Santana was trying desperately to hold back her tears. "I don't feel safe in that house. I-I'm not ready." A single tear made it's way down Santana's tanned face at this statement and Maria's heart broke. Taking a deep breath, Maria stood up, keeping a hold on her daughter's hand.

"I just want you to know that I love you" she said, "And you're always welcome back home, when you are ready." At this, the older Latina offered her daughter a soft smile, which never reached her grief-stricken eyes, and squeezed her hand gently, before dropping it and turning around. Santana wiped her eyes quickly, before looking up at Brittany and nodding to tell her it was time to go.

When they reached the car, Santana was enveloped in a bone crushing hug by Mrs Pierce, not unlike one another certain bubbly blonde would give her at any opportunity.

"Santana! It's so good to see you!" the blonde woman squealed, again not unlike her daughter, "Come on, get in! You'll catch your death out here!" After a good ten minutes of lifting and twisting and turning, Santana, Brittany and Mrs Pierce were all settled in the car. Santana was in the back seat behind Mrs Pierce, with Brittany right beside her in the middle seat. Santana rested her head on Brittany's shoulder as they pulled out of the parking lot.

"San?" Brittany murmured softly after a few minutes of sitting in a comfortable silence. Santana, whose eyelids felt heavy and was on the verge of drifting off, could only grunt lightly in response. Brittany however, took this as an adequate response and continued on, "You know in the hospital when you said," Brittany lowered her voice, not sure if she wanted her mother to hear this just yet, "You said that you loved me." Santana sat up at this, brought to full attention, and looked straight into ocean blue eyes. Brittany met her gaze, "Did-Did you really mean it? Like, did you mean 'I _love _love you' or like 'I love you as a friend'. 'Cause I mean, I tell Lord Tubbington that I love him all the time, but I'm not sure I'd like to make out with him or anything," Brittany looked incredibly thoughtful and Santana couldn't hold back a little giggle, "So I was just wondering when you said it if-" Brittany was stopped by Santana's finger on her lips. The Latina gave a shy smile before reaching for Brittany's hand and taking it in her own, uninjured hand. Taking a deep breath, she looked into Brittany's eyes again, and didn't even bother keeping her voice down as she began to speak.

"Brittany Susan Pierce, I love you with all of my heart," Santana began, offering a loving smile before going on, "I think I have loved you from the very first moment I saw you in Principal Figgins' office. I love how you're always so happy and friendly. I love how you always know how to cheer me up and make me feel safe and cared for. I love the feel of you're hair and you're absolutely perfect smell. You're always there when I need you and even with all my shit going on, you still stuck by me. I cannot tell you how much that means to me." Santana reached up to wipe a few stray tears off of Brittany's face, as she fought to control her own. "So, yes Brittany, when I said I loved you, I meant it. I love you so, so much. More than you'll ever know…" Then, the tears cascaded down the Latina's face and she couldn't control herself any longer. She didn't care that Brittany's mother was in the front seat and had most definitely heard everything and that what she was about to do would probably not please Mrs Pierce. She loved Brittany and nothing was going to stop her from showing it, so she tilted the blonde's face towards her, and pulled her into a searing, passionate kiss.

The whole world seemed to disappear as their lips connected. It was just the two girls and their love for each other and nothing, not even Brittany's mother, could ruin this moment. Little did they know though, that Mrs Pierce had no intention of bursting the two girls' bubble. She sat with her eyes glued to the road in front of her, smirking slightly. She knew this day would come. She saw how much the two girls cared for each other and the looks and lingering touches between the two teens did nothing but reinforce her suspicions.

Soon, the need for air became a problem, and the two girls were forced to pull apart. Brittany couldn't contain the goofy grin that took over her face after that perfect moment. Leaning her forehead against Santana's she looked deep into her eyes and breathed out, "I love you too San."

After a few moments, the girls separated and Santana put her head gently back onto Brittany's shoulder. The blonde girl looked towards her mother, fearing what her reaction to their intimate moment would be. But as soon as she saw the look of genuine happiness in her mother's eyes, she knew it was okay. She knew that her mother only wanted her to be happy and that, with Santana, she was. Brittany offered her mother a thankful smile before speaking again.

"Well, now that we've got that out of the way," she lifted Santana's head gently off her shoulder and looked at her again, "Santana, will you go on a date with me tomorrow?" The blonde grinned widely at the Latina, who looked pleased but also a little disappointed.

"Britt, I'd love to but, I'm not really in much of a condition to be going out" she gestured towards her various injuries and shrugged lightly. Brittany just waved away her argument.

"Oh don't worry! I've got that covered! You won't have to worry about anything. Just say yes and I promise, we'll have the best date ever!" Brittany squealed slightly at the end of her sentence, and Santana couldn't help but notice how adorable she was. How could she say no to someone so sweet and adorable?

"Okay Britt! I'll go on a date with you!" Santana beamed at the look of pure delight on the blonde's face. She had a feeling that tomorrow would be one of the best days ever. She just had to make it through tonight first.

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><p><strong>So what did everyone think? Drop me a review and let me know!<strong>

**Later! :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey everyone! So this is pretty much a filler chapter! There's a bit of everything in here though! Anyway enjoy!  
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**Chapter 3**

Mrs Pierce pulled up outside her house and switched off the car. She turned in her seat to see her daughter fast asleep, with Santana's head resting on her shoulder. This was the most relaxed she had seen Santana in a long time. She looked so peaceful as she slept, content with just being with Brittany. It was a shame to wake them up.

"Rise and shine, girls," she said with a soft smile as both of the girls cracked open their eyelids slowly, "We're home." Santana couldn't help but smile at the use of the word 'home' and the rush of warmth that came over her. As she looked up at the Pierce's house, she had to admit that this was the place that she now felt was her home. Her own house hadn't been a home in a long, long time.

After another struggle with getting Santana out of the car and into her wheelchair, which involved Brittany lifting her bridal style and almost falling over the sidewalk, only to be caught by her mother, the three finally made it into the house. As they made it safely through the front door, it suddenly dawned on Santana that she wasn't going to be able to get upstairs, meaning she couldn't get to her bed. Mrs Pierce caught Santana looking warily at the staircase.

"Oh don't worry Santana!" Mrs Pierce said jovially, "I've brought Brittany's mattress into the living room for you to sleep in," Santana let out an audible sigh of relief, "And Brittany can sleep _on the sofa_ in there too." At this Mrs Pierce sent a meaningful look towards her daughter, who didn't even see it, as she was too busy just admiring how beautiful Santana looked, even with all her injuries. Mrs Pierce just rolled her eyes at her love-struck daughter and turned to go into the kitchen.

"Mrs Pierce?" Santana called softly after her, causing the blonde haired woman to turn around, "Thank you. For everything." Mrs Pierce caught the deep meaning behind the Latina's words and smiled gently.

"Don't worry about it, Santana. You know it's no problem at all. You're like a second daughter to me. And how many more times do I have to tell you? Call me Susan." Mrs Pierce turned away again and headed towards the kitchen once more. Santana was touched by the blonde haired woman's words. For the first time in a long time, she felt like somebody, other than Brittany, loved her.

Meanwhile, Brittany had come back to reality and began wheeling Santana towards the living room. As they entered, Brittany's cat, Lord Tubbington, leapt up from his position by the fireplace and ran to greet the girls. Brittany was delighted to see him, Santana not so much. She pretty much _hated _cats.

As Brittany was rubbing Tubs, Santana noticed a calendar on the wall. _Oh. Fuck _she thought. The calendar said that it was December 20th. _Five days until Christmas and I have absolutely nothing for Britt! Shit, shit, SHIT!_

"San are you okay?" Brittany had noticed that Santana was looking very worried. Santana turned to her, startled for a moment, before breaking into a weak smile.

"Yeah, I'm fine Britt. It's getting late, maybe we should go to bed?" Truth be told, Santana just wanted to avoid any awkward questions from Brittany. She wasn't exactly looking forward to attempting to go to sleep. She could already see herself waking up several times, that is, if she could get to sleep in the first place. Brittany nodded her agreement and then informed Santana that she was going to get them some clothes to sleep in, before bounding off up the stairs.

Santana became all too aware that she was now in the room on her own. The curtains weren't drawn and Santana found herself staring out the window. As she looked out into the dark night, all the memories of the past few weeks came back to her. Her father didn't love her. He hated her in fact. But why? Santana looked down at herself and couldn't shake the thoughts that were forming in her head, slowly dragging her down. _I'm worthless, weak…My sister died because of me…I'm a failure…Disappointment…_She couldn't push away any of these thoughts. It hurt, to think of herself like that. The worst part though, was she believed every single one of those thoughts. Her father had hurt her because she deserved it, she was worthless.

She needed to stop the pain. Not the physical pain, but the emotional pain. She spotted what she desired; the drinks cabinet, where a full bottle of vodka sat. With one hand, she began to roll towards the cabinet at an agonisingly slow speed, pushing all of her arm muscles to the limit. Just as she was about to open the door and reach for the bottle, Brittany came bursting through the door again, clothes for both of them in hand. She stopped as she noticed Santana.

"San? What're you doing? How did you even get over there?" She scrunched her eyebrows in confusion as Santana pulled her hand abruptly away from the cabinet.

"Eh…umm…Lord-Lord Tubbington!" she cried, "He-he pushed me over here and I tried to-to catch him but he got-he got away." Santana smiled sheepishly. She hated lying to Brittany, but she didn't want her to know what she had been reaching for, knowing that the blonde would probably convince her it was a bad idea, even though at the moment, she was sure it was the best idea in the world. Brittany seemed to take the excuse as the truth though, as she rushed to Santana's side and helped her to get changed.

Mrs Pierce walked in ten minutes later to find the two girls almost ready for bed. She and Santana met each others eyes, the Latina giving the older woman a 'we need to talk' look. Mrs Pierce took the hint and turned to Brittany.

"Brittany, honey? Will you be a dear and run upstairs and look for my hairbrush? I seem to have misplaced it." Brittany nodded enthusiastically, before sprinting out of the room. Ms Pierce then turned back to Santana and gestured for her to go on.

"Mrs Pier- I mean Susan," Santana quickly corrected herself after seeing the look sent her way by the blonde, "I need your help." The Latina hesitated before going on once the older woman had nodded. "Christmas is in a few days and I have absolutely nothing for Brittany!" Susan smirked a little at Santana's panic, "And as you can see, I'm not exactly in the best condition to go trolling around shopping malls!" Santana gestured wildly to the wheelchair she was sitting in, "And that's where you come in," she looked towards Susan, "I think I know what I want to get her. So if I ring up the shop to order the present, would you pick it up for me?" Santana looked hopefully at Susan, who was looking very thoughtful, as if contemplating the plea. Eventually her face broke into a smile.

"Yes of course Santana! Don't be silly!" Santana let out a sigh of relief and just managed to thank Susan, before Brittany was back in the room, panting as if she had been running, which she probably had, but holding a hairbrush aloft in her hand. Mrs Pierce got off the couch and took the brush from her daughter.

"Thanks Brittany. Anyway, I'm gonna hit the hay." Susan smiled at her attempt to 'be cool', "I suggest you girls do the same. You have a big day ahead of you, Santana!" She winked at Santana, who looked slightly confused, before turning to give her daughter a goodnight kiss on the cheek and heading upstairs.

Brittany approached Santana and lifted her out of her chair and into her bed. As she placed the Latina down softly, she tripped over the edge of the mattress and ended up almost crushing Santana as she landed on top of her. The two girls burst into a fit of giggles, which soon became uncontrollable. Santana needed a good laugh after all the drama she had been through recently.

Eventually, the laughter died down and Santana felt a wave of tiredness sweep over her. She sighed deeply before speaking.

"Britt, I know there are plenty of other things we could do in a bed together with you on top of me," she giggled and winked cheekily at the shocked face of the blonde girl above her, "But I'm actually really tired and I'd like to go to sleep." She looked away awkwardly, "Is that okay?"

"That's fine San." Brittany replied as she leaned in and gave Santana a quick peck on the lips. She then swiftly rolled off the Latina and hopped onto the sofa, where she would be sleeping. Once she had snuggled under the covers, she felt the tiredness consume her.

"Goodnight San," she murmured before drifting off into a peaceful sleep.

* * *

><p><strong>So what'd you think! Let me know in a review if you want! Please and thanks! :)<strong>


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey everyone! So, I'm sory for the delay with this chapter i've just been really busy the past few days and didn't have time to write! This chapter is longer than the other's and it's nice and light! Hopefully all your fluffy little hearts will be satisfied! :) Enjoy!  
><strong>

**Chapter 4**

Brittany awoke the next morning with a smile already on her face. Today was going to be a great day. Lord knows Santana needed it after the night she had just had, waking up close to every two hours, kicking and screaming. Brittany hated to see her friend so distressed and it hurt to know that there wasn't much she could do to help.

Picking herself up off the couch, she decided it was time to get on with her day. She had to make it perfect for Santana so she might as well start straight away. She made her way quickly out to the kitchen, stepping quietly around the mattress on the floor, not wishing to wake up the sleeping Latina.

When she emerged in the kitchen, she glanced towards the table and spotted a note stuck to it. Picking it up, she smiled as she saw what was written:

**Just tell me what I need to do.**

**Mom xx**

Underneath, a phone number was scribbled, with 'The shop' written beside it. Brittany was happy her mother had remembered to put down that phone number. She decided to get to work straight away, dialling the number written on the note and informing them what needed to be done. She then proceeded to call her mother, giving her the details of what she planned for the day and how she wanted her mother to help. When she hung up, she couldn't help but smile. _Today is going to be amazing, _she thought, as she bounced out of the room and upstairs to get ready and get clothes for Santana.

xXx

Half an hour later, she bounded back down the stairs, dressed in black skinny jeans and a light blue top with one sleeve hanging off her shoulder. She wanted today to be perfect so she decided to put effort into her clothing choice, picking the blue to match her eyes. She didn't expect Santana to be awake after the tough night she had, so she was surprised when she entered the living room to find Santana sitting up in her bed, looking confused and slightly annoyed.

"Britt!" She exclaimed as the blonde entered the room, "Where the hell were you?"

"Sorry San, I was just upstairs getting ready for the awesome day we're gonna have!" She smiled slyly as she sidled over to the Latina, pulling the wheelchair along with her. Santana opened her mouth to speak, but was silenced by Brittany's soft lips on her own. As she pulled away, she smiled again. "Don't worry about it. Now let's start with me making us some breakfast." She nimbly swept Santana off the bed, placing her in her wheelchair and led them into the kitchen. Without a word, she set to work around the kitchen and Santana decided it was best not to disturb her, so she sat in silence.

Ten minutes later, Brittany turned around and presented Santana with a plate of pancakes. She had skilfully made a smiley face on top out of strawberries and chocolate sauce. Santana's heart melted at the sight, and she wasn't one of those mushy times. She took her first bite.

"Oh my God, Britt! These taste amazing!" She closed her eyes as she ate, taking in the heavenly taste of the food. Brittany's grin grew wider. All she wanted was to make Santana happy and she had done that. _Stage one: Complete, _she thought to herself, as she watched the Latina eat.

xXx

"San would you _please _hurry up? It's almost one o' clock!" Brittany was tired of waiting for the Latina. Santana had been in the bathroom for the past half an hour getting ready. Brittany was confused as to what she was actually doing, as she had helped the brunette to get dressed earlier. She couldn't see how it would take her this long to put on make up, but sure enough, when Santana did finally emerge from the bathroom, she looked the exact same as she had when she had entered, other than a bit of make up. Brittany gave the Latina a 'what the hell?' look as she passed, moving the wheelchair with one hand.

"God, Britt!" Santana cried, "It's not exactly easy to put on make up with one hand!" She huffed loudly and Brittany couldn't help but laugh at the other girl's antics. She simply couldn't stay mad at the feisty Latina.

"Whatever!" She rolled her eyes mockingly, "Let's just go."

"Where exactly are we going Britt?" Santana asked as she was wheeled out the door. Brittany smiled to herself as she locked the front door behind her.

"That's for me to know and you to find out!"

xXx

Brittany stopped the car, finally, after driving for almost half an hour. She turned to Santana, who was in the back seat staring out the window and taking in her surroundings. The blonde saw a smile begin to appear on the Latina's face.

Brittany had brought them to the big hill on the outskirts of Lima, which provided a beautiful view of the town and surrounding countryside. Santana had mentioned once before that she used to come here with her grandmother when she was younger, before she passed away. They would just sit on the grass and look out at the town where her grandmother lived.

Brittany quickly unbuckled her belt and helped the Latina into her wheelchair. The blonde pulled a blanket out of the car and placed it on the ground at the top of the hill, lifting Santana onto it and sitting down beside her.

"This is so beautiful, B" Santana whispered, as she gazed in awe at the magnificent view in front of her, "Thank you." The Latina turned to Brittany and gave her a slow, passionate kiss. When they broke apart, Brittany was breathless.

"No problem" she managed to breathe out. The two sat in comfortable silence for a while, just looking out over the town. Something caught the Latina's eye as she sat there. It was McKinley High. The sight of the school brought her back to reality.

"We have to go back there next week," Santana muttered. Brittany looked bewildered at the sudden words, "School, I mean," Santana clarified, "I can't go back there like this." Santana looked pained and Brittany's heart ached for her.

"But San, the doctor said you get to take of your sling and the cast on your arm on Christmas Eve. And if you do your exercises, your arm will be back to full strength and you'll be out of the wheelchair and into crutches like three days after!" Brittany beamed at the thought of Santana finally getting a bit better, but the Latina still didn't look pleased.

"I know Britt," she began, "But I'll still be in crutches and everyone will stare at me and ask me loads of questions about what happened to me. What am I supposed to say?" She turned to Brittany once more, pain and fear in her eyes. The blonde gave her a reassuring smile.

"I'll be with you every step of the way. I won't let anyone hurt you." Brittany took hold of her friend's hand and squeezed it lightly, "And if anyone said anything, you could just slash them with your vicious, vicious words." Brittany grinned widely as the Latina beside her couldn't contain a giggle.

"Okay Britt, you promise?" Santana turned serious again.

"I promise." Brittany leaned over and gave Santana another kiss, slow and reassuring. "Now, it's time we got moving. We have places to be." Brittany smiled slyly as the Latina gave her a quizzical look. Once she had settled the brunette in the car, with the blanket and wheelchair packed away, she sent a quick text to her mother, which read:

**Stage 2 complete. Please commence Stage 4 while I take care of Stage 3.**

**B xx**

Brittany smiled softly to herself as the delivery report came in. _I'm a genius, _she thought, as they drove off the hill and back towards Lima.

xXx

"Here we are!" Brittany exclaimed as she pulled the car into the parking lot of a cute little building called 'Dino's Diner'.

"What are we doing here B?" Santana asked, a bit confused. Brittany turned in her seat, bouncing up and down excitedly.

"We're going for a progressive dinner!" Santana still looked bewildered so Brittany continued, "It's where you go to different places for the different parts of the meal!" This helped the Latina to understand and her face lit up at the gesture. Brittany had done a lot of planning. "So we're having starters here! I know you love really hot soup and when I was a little girl, when we'd go out to the park to feed the ducks, my dad would always take me here for hot soup to warm me up afterwards." Brittany smiled as she got out of the car and wheeled Santana into the diner.

The two girls sat in a booth and ordered their soup. The service was great and the food arrived quickly.

"Holy. Sweet. Hell." Santana exclaimed as she took her first gulp of vegetable soup, "This is freakin' awesome!" A huge grin took over Brittany's face at the Latina's sudden outburst.

"Glad you like it," Brittany said smugly. She knew she would love it. "I hope you like the next course just as much." Santana looked to Brittany and opened her mouth to speak, but the blonde just tapped her nose with her index finger, not uttering a word as they finished their starter and she got up to pay.

xXx

"Oh my freakin' God, Britt!" Santana squealed from the back seat as Brittany stopped the car. "I _love _Breadstix! You know me so well!" Santana was ecstatic, to say the least, as they entered the restaurant. They sat at a booth and Santana stared adoringly at the blonde across from her. "I love you so much" she whispered, so softly that Brittany could hardly hear her. She leant across the table and gave Santana a soft kiss. Actions spoke louder than words, after all.

They both ordered spaghetti and meatballs. As they waited for their food, Santana brought a breadstick to her mouth. She hadn't had one in years. As she took the first bite, she almost screamed with the deliciousness of it. Brittany watched the brunette eat. She loved to see her so happy. She wanted her to stay like this forever, but she knew that was naïve. Santana had a lot of problems that she needed to get past so Brittany was happy if she could forget about them for just one day.

She had heard once on a television programme that music can be a form of therapy. Brittany had often heard Santana singing softly in the shower. She had a beautiful voice. An idea suddenly came to Brittany. _What if_- Her thoughts were interrupted by the waitress bringing the food to the table. Santana's eyes doubled in size as she took in the amount of food piled onto the plate, and Brittany couldn't help but smile even wider. _Stage 3: Complete._

xXx

"Thanks so much for today, Britt," Santana murmured while she pressed soft kisses to Brittany's neck, as she parked the car in the driveway. Brittany shivered at the feeling of Santana's warm breath on her neck.

"It's not over yet," she replied softly. She silently hoped that her mother had remembered everything. They entered the house and Brittany led the way to the back garden, sighing in relief as she noticed everything laid out perfectly. Santana took in the garden before her.

A large blanket was laid on the ground in the middle of the garden. Beside that, were a freshly lit campfire and a small basket which was closed to hide the contents. Santana was astounded. Brittany had gone to so much effort and it was all for her. Brittany helped lower Santana onto the blanket and went over to the basket.

She opened the top and peered inside to make sure everything she needed was there. She pulled out a bag of marshmallows and two skewers. She smiled and sighed in relief at the same time when she saw the object she ordered from 'the shop' this morning sitting in the corner of the basket. She had to remember to thank her mother later. She closed the basket again, leaving the object inside for the moment, and turned back to Santana holding the marshmallows and skewers aloft, grinning widely.

"Let's roast some marshmallows!" Brittany squealed, handing a skewer and marshmallow to Santana, who held it immediately over the fire. As they waited for them to roast, Santana turned to Brittany.

"Britt, thank you so much for today," Santana looked down nervously before mumbling the next words, "It's the nicest thing anyone's ever done for me." She felt tears stinging at her eyes and she couldn't bring herself to look at the blonde girl in front of her. Placing one finger underneath the Latina's chin, Brittany turned her face towards her.

"You're worth it," she whispered before pulling her into a searing, passionate kiss. In that moment, the two girls didn't care about the fact that they no longer had marshmallows roasting as they had melted away, all that mattered was the two of them and the moment they were sharing.

Finally, the two pulled away, breathless. They looked at each other intensely for a few moments, before Brittany broke away and reached into the basket, pulling out the object from earlier. She turned back around to Santana, holding a small box in one hand. Santana's eyes widened as she opened it to reveal a beautiful silver ring. Before Santana could say anything, Brittany began to speak.

"Santana, you're my best friend," she began, smiling timidly at the Latina, "Ever since I met you, you've been nothing but kind and funny and caring. I really like being your best friend but I feel like we can be more. We've already said that we love each other so I know we've skipped a few steps but I was wondering," she hesitated slightly before rushing out the question, "Santana, will you be my girlfriend?" Santana was silent a moment, making it seem as though she actually had to think about it, before practically screaming,

"Yes of course!" Brittany burst into a relieved smile, before slipping the ring onto Santana's finger and kissing her softly on the lips. They relaxed back in the blanket and continued to roast marshmallows for a while until they were too tired to keep their eyes open and Brittany managed to drag Santana into her wheelchair and back inside the house, where they flopped into bed, not even bothering to change their clothes.

As Santana began to drift off, she couldn't help but think that maybe things were finally looking up.

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><p><strong>So what did you think? Let me know in a review! Thanks! :D<strong>


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey everyone! Ok so here's another chapter! I'm not really happy with how it turned out but I wanted to get a chapter up today so here it is! **

**To my anonymous reviewer Dianna: Thanks very much for pointing out that error! :) As I live in Ireland, I'm not familiar with the climate of Lima, Ohio so my deepest apologies! Hopefully i can make amends with this chapter and let me know if there's anything else that doesn't quite fit! :) Thanks again! :)**

**Chapter 5**

"San! Wake up! Wake up! Wake UP!" Santana groaned loudly as she was awoken by a pair of strong hands shaking her by the shoulders and Brittany practically screaming in her ear and bouncing up and down manically. Santana cracked her eyes open, immediately shielding them from the sun's rays, blinding her from the window. She could just make out Brittany sitting beside her, grinning widely.

Santana could recall being woken up in a similar way a few days ago, although for a completely different reason.

* * *

><p>"<em>San look!" Santana had just been awoken by Brittany, who had since jumped off <em>_the bed and was now standing in front of the window, staring out at something awe, bouncing with excitement._

_Santana pushed herself into a sitting position, more than a little annoyed at being woken up so early. She struggled to keep her voice even as she addressed the blonde, "What is it Britt?" Brittany turned around swiftly, pointing out the window._

"_It's SNOWING!" Brittany began running aimlessly around the room and Santana barely stopped herself from rolling her eyes and letting out a frustrated sigh. It snowed every year in Lima, Ohio and just because it came a bit later this year, Brittany had completely lost it. Not to mention, she had woken Santana up extra early for something that was as common as rain during a hurricane. She was not pleased._

_Her bad feelings were quickly removed when Brittany was all dressed up in various layers and a furry hat with a bobble on top, looking positively adorable. Brittany caught her girlfriend staring at her and couldn't help but blush._

"_Come on, San" she said after a few moments, her previous excitement returning, "I wanna build a snowman that looks like you!" She grinned wickedly, before pouncing on her girlfriend._

* * *

><p>Santana was brought back to the present by Brittany pulling gently on her arm, trying to get her out of the bed.<p>

"Woah Britt! Calm down!" Santana grinned playfully before turning serious, "And watch my arm, it's still a bit sore." The Latina flexed her arm slightly at these words. She had taken off the sling and cast the night before, delighted to finally be rid of them after having them for such a long period of time. Brittany quickly dropped her arm and shrugged apologetically.

Santana felt like a weight had been lifted off here shoulders when she removed the cast that had covered her arm for so long. It felt like so much more than a cast was being removed, though. It seemed that somehow, the cast was symbolising something else, something she couldn't quite put her finger on, but she felt lighter and she felt like she had more freedom. That night, she had a nightmare-less sleep and she was incredibly grateful, especially since she was now awake at a criminally early hour.

"Merry Christmas, babe," Brittany murmured, as she finally began to calm down and crawled behind her girlfriend, giving her a gentle massage, "And look, it's snowing."

_I'm dreaming of a white Christmas_

_Just like the ones I used to know_

Brittany began to sing softly into the Latina's ear, sending a shiver down her spine.

_Where the treetops glisten,_

_And children listen_

_To hear sleigh bells in the snow_

Santana closed her eyes, taking in the blonde's beautiful voice and immersing herself in this intimate moment.

_I'm dreaming of a white Christmas_

_With every Christmas card I write_

_May your days be merry and bright_

_And may all your Christmases be white_

This was the first time Santana had ever heard her sing and she never wanted it to end. She wanted to hear it again and again.

_I'm dreaming of a white Christmas_

_With every Christmas card I write_

_May your days be merry and bright_

_And may all your Christmases be white_

The blonde finished the song, holding the last note a little longer than the rest and finishing in a whisper. Santana opened her eyes and turned towards the other girl, looking adoringly into her eyes.

"That was beautiful," she whispered, "You have an amazing voice, B." Brittany began to blush and looked away bashfully. Santana continued to look at here, admiring how beautiful she was, even when she was blushing so furiously. If anything, that made her more beautiful. Eventually Brittany looked at Santana again and broke the silence.

"So do you," she said, smiling. Santana looked confused, so she continued, "I've heard you in the shower a few times," Santana opened her mouth to speak but was cut off, "I think we should join Glee club," Brittany rushed out, not sure how Santana would take it. When the Latina didn't reply, she decided to speak again, "Quinn says it's really fun! She said all they do is sing and dance all the time and they're like a big family! And Mr Schuester is sooo nice and we could just relax and have fun!" Brittany smiled widely as she finished, but abruptly stopped when she saw the mixed emotions on the Latina's face.

"Wait, who the hell is Quinn?" Santana asked after a few moments of silence.

"She's my friend from Cheerios" Brittany grinned, "She's awesome! She's in Glee club and she's so good at singing and dancing!" Then, the realisation hit Santana.

"Wait, you mean Quinn Fabray?" Brittany nodded, smiling, "Head cheerleader, Quinn Fabray?" The blonde simply nodded again. Santana was worried. She had heard about Quinn Fabray. She was the HBIC of McKinley High, throwing slushies and putting the fear of God into most other students had become a daily occurrence for her. Luckily, the Latina had managed to mostly avoid her so far, apart from a few death glares that had been sent her way, which had absolutely no effect on her because she knew she could take the blonde any day. "Brittany, why are you friends with her? She's a complete bitch!" Santana's protective side was taking over.

"No she isn't!" Brittany shot back, more than a little annoyed at Santana for insulting her friend, "Everyone thinks she's a bad person, but she's not! I want you to meet her, San! Then you'll know what I mean." Santana was about to object, until Brittany put on her best pout and she knew it was a lost cause.

"Fine!" Santana growled, less than pleased. Brittany clapped her hands excitedly, before turning back to the Latina. Seemingly, she wasn't finished.

"So, will you join Glee club with me? We both like to sing and I love dancing obviously, and I've heard music can really help with…" Brittany trailed off, knowing that what she could have said next would probably not be the smartest idea, "So yeah," she continued awkwardly, trying to gloss over the momentary silence, "will you please? For me?" Santana was incredibly reluctant to agree to this request. She hadn't sang in public since her old school and when her father found out he wasn't exactly happy. Then again, she had really loved it and her father couldn't really stop her now. Then she saw the blonde giving her puppy dog eyes and she couldn't resist.

"Yeah okay, whatever," Santana rolled her eyes and shrugged in defeat. There really was no saying 'no' to the blonde. Brittany squealed in utter delight and enveloped Santana in a bone-crushing hug, just as her mother walked into the room, looking exhausted and not fully awake. The two girls broke their hug to turn around and smile up at the older blonde.

"Morning girls," Susan said, eyeing the two teens suspiciously, "Happy Christmas!"

"Happy Christmas!" The two girls cried in unison, turning and bursting into a fit of uncontrollable giggles as they did so. Susan rolled her eyes at the two girls' antics, before turning towards the door.

"I'll make us some waffles for breakfast! She threw back over her shoulder, before disappearing into the kitchen.

"Come on!" Brittany cried, after finally managing to get her giggles under control, "Let's open some presents!"

**TBC**

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><p><strong>So what did everyone think? Let me know! Thanks for reading! :)<br>**


	6. Chapter 6

**Apologies again for the delay! I've just been so busy lately! Return of the angst in this chapter! ;) Happy reading! :)  
><strong>

**Chapter 6**

Brittany bounded over to the Christmas tree, dropping down onto the floor beside it. The tree was beautifully decorated with multicoloured lights and simple baubles. The fresh smell of pine needles was practically dripping off the tree and permeating the room.

Brittany looked like a six year old again as she pulled her enormous stack of presents from various family members towards her, eyes growing wide as saucers as she admired the monstrous pile.

Santana felt a bit awkward as she dragged herself over to the tree and sat beside Brittany. She, after all, would be getting no presents and she felt a little disappointed as she saw the amount that Brittany had gotten and couldn't help but feel a tinge of jealousy. That jealousy was quickly replaced by surprise as Brittany reached out and grabbed two more presents from under the tree and handed them to Santana.

Santana glanced at the labels on the presents and couldn't contain the grin that took over here face as she looked towards Brittany.

"What?" The blonde asked, stopping midway through unwrapping a present as she noticed the Latina staring at her, smirking.

"You could have just written your own name," Santana chuckled light-heartedly, hitting her girlfriend lightly on the arm as she gestured to one of the presents, with a label saying:

**To Santana**

**From Lord Tubbington**

"San that's mean" Brittany said simply, frowning slightly before turning back to her own presents. Santana was thoroughly confused with the answer she had been given, but just shook her head and got on with unwrapping her presents. She started with the one that was supposedly from Lord Tubbington and pulled off the wrapping to reveal a framed photo of the two girls lying on Santana's bed just staring straight at each other, hands linked between them. Strangely the photo seemed to have been taken from close to ground level and Santana didn't remember Brittany setting up a camera at any point.

Despite her confusion, Santana couldn't help but love the photo and couldn't stop looking at it. Well, looking at Brittany in it, more precisely. Eventually she managed to tear her gaze away and, gently placing the picture on the floor beside her, moved onto her other present. The label indicated that it was from Mrs Pierce. She was touched that Susan would think to give her a present after everything she was already giving her.

The Latina unwrapped it to find a brand new Letterman jacket. It wasn't unlike the jackets that she had seen the Cheerios wearing, other than it was blue and white, rather than red and white. She turned the jacket around and grinned even wider than she previously had been when she spotted 'Santana' written in gold writing on the back. She turned to Brittany to show off her jacket and immediately saw the blonde holding an identical one, with 'Brittany' printed on the back. They had matching jackets. Santana's heart swelled and she couldn't wait to thank Susan for the present.

Both girls simultaneously pulled on their respective jackets and then reached under the tree and both pulled out another present each. They smiled shyly before handing each other the items and mumbling a 'Happy Christmas' in unison. Santana gave Brittany a slight nudge, silently telling her to open her present first. The blonde girl complied and began removing the wrapping paper. She squealed in delight as a 'Make your own candy floss' machine popped out. Candy floss was her absolute favourite food.

She then noticed the other item, a small box. She opened it to reveal a silver charm bracelet with a single charm on it. It was 'S and B' engraved in the middle of a small heart. Brittany was struck by the meaning of those two little letters.

"I love it, S" she whispered, not taking her eyes from the metal as she fastened it onto her wrist, "I'll never take it off." This time she looked up at Santana, giving her a soft smile and leaning in to place a gentle kiss on her lips. As she pulled away, an enormous grin engulfed her face. "Your turn!"

Santana smiled and turned to her, considerably smaller, present. She didn't mind the size though, all that mattered was she was actually being remembered on an occasion. As she pulled off the wrapping paper, she discovered that it was in fact an envelope. As she began to open it, she felt Brittany's hand on her own and looked up to meet her eyes.

"I know it should be romantic, and stuff," Brittany began, looking slightly nervous, "But I wanted you to know that I got these ages ago, before we were together or anything, so I still hope you like it." Santana smiled reassuringly, before returning to the envelope.

Her eyes grew wide as she pulled out the contents of the envelope. In her hand were two tickets to see Adele in Cleveland. Santana almost screamed, but instead settled for ambushing her girlfriend, leaping at her and holding her in a vice-like embrace and gushing out thank you's. Brittany could only laugh at here girlfriend's excitement. She had hoped the Latina would react like this, she needed some joy in her life at the moment.

When Santana finally pulled away, she was breathless and couldn't bring herself to say anything more, so the two girls sat in comfortable silence, which was eventually broken by Mrs Pierce entering the living room, announcing that breakfast was ready.

xXx

Santana could feel her eyes drifting shut as she stared at the TV. It had been a long day. The two girls had spent the whole day checking out Brittany's presents, which included a karaoke machine, leading to both girls screaming their heads off to various chart-topping hits.

Dinner had been absolutely amazing. It had been a long time since Santana had even had company on Christmas, never mind a perfectly cooked dinner with an option for seconds and even thirds. Herself and Brittany had helped a little with the cooking, but most of the credit had to go to Susan.

In the evening they had played some board games with Susan, which led to a few heated debates between mother and daughter about the rules of 'Monopoly'. Santana had even had fake money thrown at her by daring to make a comment that seemed to favour one of the parties.

To top off the day, Susan had gone out for a drive, leaving the two girls alone, and Santana immediately attacked the liquor cabinet. The two shots of tequila managed to wash away any lingering hurt that Santana felt about her own life away from Brittany's seemingly perfect one. She could get used to that.

And now, here they were, curled up in front of the TV, watching 'It's A Wonderful Life', with Santana's head on Brittany's lap and a pale hand running through dark hair. Santana had never felt better and could feel herself drifting off, just as the doorbell rang. She vaguely registered Susan getting up to answer the door, but didn't even bother opening her eyes until she heard the visitor enter the living room and Brittany's hand stopped moving through her hair. Now, that was enough to get her to open her eyes.

Her gaze travelled to the person standing in the doorway. Short, tanned skin, dark brown eyes and wavy hair, it was the last person she wanted to see. She sat up quickly and glared at her mother, grabbing Brittany's hand and holding on as she did so.

"Hi S," her mother began meekly, staring at the floor in front of her, "I-I just wanted to say, um, Happy Christmas and I brought you this." She gestured to the small box she was carrying and handed to her daughter. Santana, however, made no effort to move, so she just placed it awkwardly on the couch next to her. Maria suddenly noticed the two girls' clasped hands and looked uncertain. Santana could see something else in her eyes that she couldn't quite place, as she spoke, "So are you two…?" Maria trailed off, clearly unable to finish the question, so Santana decided to do it for her.

"Yes we are! I love Brittany, she loves me and she is my girlfriend!" Santana spat, "I'm gay, Mom! And I don't care what you or anyone else says, because it's who I am and I'm not afraid any more!" Santana glared at her mother, feeling an enormous sense of relief after finally being able to say it out loud. And then Santana realised what she had seen in her mother's eyes. It was disgust. But then she realised it wasn't directed at her, it was Brittany. She thought Brittany was the disgusting one and this got to Santana more than anything her mother could ever say to her.

"Right, well," Maria pulled herself up to her full height and took a deep breath, "Well, just so you know, you're still welcome at home, dear," she completed ignored Brittany with this statement, staring directly at her daughter, "I hope you come to your senses soon," she said matter-of-factly, before turning swiftly and exiting without another word.

Santana was left speechless. Yet again, her mother had let her down and not supported her. Weren't parents supposed to love their children unconditionally? Santana had forever felt like second best, especially since her sister died. After the accident, both her mother and her father spent more time dwelling on their lost daughter than the one they still had, leaving Santana to fend for herself most of the time. All she wanted was to be loved and now that she had that with Brittany, they couldn't be happy for her. Instead her mother had pretended like she cared about her. It seemed like, if she couldn't have Santana, nobody could.

"I think I'm gonna go to bed Britt," Santana said wearily, looking sadly at her girlfriend, who just nodded in return, before hopping off the couch and switching off the TV. Susan came in to offer a quick goodnight before heading to bed herself.

Brittany switched off the light without a word and jumped into bed. Santana was happy with Brittany's silence. She didn't really feel like talking now.

Maria had ruined a perfectly good day, just by showing up. It was then that Santana realised that she could never go home. She didn't belong there. Home is where the heart is and her heart was with Brittany.

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><p><strong>Thoughts? Reviews help me write faster! Please let me know what you thought!<strong>

**Till next time! :)**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey guys! Here's a new chapter! Okay I'm not sure if many people are still reading this but to those of you who've stuck with it thank you so much! :) The reviews have slowed a bit but thats ok! As long as you guys are enjoying it thats all that matters! (Although reviews are super awesome too! ;)) Anyway enjoy!  
><strong>

**Chapter 7**

Monday morning, Santana found herself standing in front of the bathroom mirror, looking at her reflection. The rest of the holidays had passed by quickly. She had heard nothing more from her mother or the hospital with news on her father. It seemed he still wasn't awake and Santana didn't mind a bit.

She still had vivid nightmares every night, but with Brittany there beside her, she felt as though she was beginning to cope with them. The two girls had spent every day of the past week enjoying each other's company, playing outside in the snow, going for walks or just curling up under a blanket in front of the TV together. Santana finally felt as though she belonged somewhere, that she was loved despite all her problems and faults.

The pain of not being loved by her own family and the fear that her father would come looking for her once he got out of the hospital still plagued her and she often found herself opening the liquor cabinet and sneaking a drink here and there. She would immediately feel guilty for breaking the Pierce's trust after all they were providing her, but her need to numb the stabbing pain that resided in her heart ultimately continually won out.

As she stared at her reflection in the mirror, she had to admit that she was looking a lot better. All of her remaining bruises from the accident had faded and the cast on her leg had been removed so she could now walk freely again. All that remained as evidence of the crash were a few small scars on her face and arms that could be easily covered. She was eating properly again and her body looked healthier than it had in years. Physically she felt great.

Unfortunately, the holidays were now over and she would be forced to leave her safe haven, the place where she was finally starting to feel secure, and enter William McKinley High School, a place of bullying, homophobia and cruelty. Ever since she had started hanging around with Brittany, people had started to notice her. She had been attracting unwanted attention from a lot of the football players and other jerks in the school who would make sleazy comments as she passed and were constantly trying to hit on her. She had managed to block them out most of the time as they were the least of her worries, but now she was not looking forward to having to fend them off in her weakened state. She had had enough of guys, Brittany was all she needed. Still, she was afraid of what people would think of her. She's seen how badly that openly gay kid, Kurt, gets treated and has no doubt that she would be treated the exact same way if people knew about hers and Brittany's relationship. She just wasn't ready for that type of shit just yet, just as she's finally managing to get her life back on track

Santana was broken from her thoughts by a gentle knock on the bathroom door and a soft voice coming from beyond it.

"San? Come on we're gonna be late," Brittany called into her girlfriend. Santana smiled, knowing how much Brittany hated to be late for anything, so she turned around and opened the door to a flustered looking blonde, "Come on S!" she said, a little more urgently, grabbing hold of Santana' hand and leading her out the door.

"Geez Britt! Calm down! You're acting like the world is ending or something!" Santana joked as the two girls hopped into Brittany's car and sped off down the road.

Ten minutes later, Brittany pulled the car into a space in the Mckinley High parking lot. She immediately made to get out of the car, only to be stopped by a gentle hand on her wrist. She turned around to find Santana looking fearfully at her. Concern immediately overtook her and she halted her movements.

"San is something wrong?" Brittany asked, eyes growing wide with concern as she held one of Santana's hands between her own. Santana looked away before speaking quietly.

"Britt I love you," Santana began, Brittany smiled and made to cut in to share the sentiment, but was cut off by the Latina beside her, "I mean, I really love you, I do, but…" Santana trailed off, looking up into concern-filled ocean blue eyes, "I'm not-I'm not ready to go p-public with _us _yet," Santana stuttered, not sure if Brittany would get what she was saying. She looked into the blonde's eyes and could see the hurt in them.

"Are you saying that you don't want to be with me?" Brittany asked, feeling tears pricking at the backs of her eyes as she tried to grasp the meaning of the Latina's words.

"No, no! Of course I want to be with you Britt-Britt," Santana coaxed gently, "I just-I just need some time okay?" Santana squeezed Brittany's hand softly, giving her a pleading smile and was relieved when she felt a slight bit of pressure from the blonde, who nodded her head slightly.

"Okay," Brittany said quietly, giving her girlfriend an understanding smile and turning back to the door, "Now let's go! We're definitely late now!" Brittany hopped out of the car and Santana let out a huge sigh of relief at Brittany's understanding, following her out of the car and into the school building.

xXx

Santana slammed the door to her locker shut and exhaled loudly. She had made it to lunch time without anything major going down. Sure, there had been stares and a few guys had made some crude comments, but she had managed to simply ignore them and get on with her day. She honestly felt that with Brittany by her side, she could handle anything. Any classes she had that Brittany wasn't in, she would sit quietly either concentrating on her work or texting her blonde girlfriend, taking no notice of anything that was said to her by the football jerks.

Santana turned away from her locker to go to lunch, still deep in her own thoughts, and walked straight into a body. She was about to curse the person out of it, until she realised with relief that it was the very blonde she had been missing in her last few classes.

"Hey B!" Santana greeted, giving her girlfriend a warm smile, "Ready to go to lunch?" At these words, Santana noticed the blonde girl's face fall and she looked away guiltily.

"San I can't, I'm sorry," Brittany looked up at her girlfriend, "Coach Sylvester organised a lunchtime Cheerios practice and said if we don't go, we're off the squad," This time it was the Latina's face that fell, "Will you be okay by yourself? I mean, we have Glee straight after so you'll see me then."

"Yeah of course Britt!" Santana slapped on a smile, though inside she was terrified of being left alone for all of lunch, "I'll be fine. Meet you outside the choir room?" Brittany grinned happily, before giving her girlfriend a tight hug.

"Yeah I'll see you there San!" she called over her shoulder as she bounded off to Cheerios. Santana turned and headed for the cafeteria. Finding an empty table in the corner, she sat down to eat her lunch in peace and quiet. Unfortunately, that didn't last long, as she soon felt an arm being thrown over her shoulders and a large body sliding in to sit beside her. The Latina flinched at the sudden physical contact and flung herself hastily off the seat. She turned to find David Karofsky, the huge football player, sitting on the seat she had just vacated, not so subtly checking her out.

"Hey baby," Karofsky sneered, while still openly leering at her, "I thought you might like some company. Can't have a fine girl like you getting lonely now can we?" He let out a chuckle and winked at her, before returning to staring at her. Santana scoffed loudly.

"No thanks," Santana spat, rolling her eyes and turning away, wanting to get as far away from the cafeteria as possible. She could hear Karofsky wolf whistle as she marched out the door without looking back.

xXx

"Hey Britt," Santana breathed out heavily as the blonde bounded up to her outside the choir room. She was relieved to be in the company of her girlfriend again after the experience at lunch had left her a bit shaken. It was then that she noticed the other blonde standing behind Brittany, looking awkward.

"San, I'd like you to meet Quinn, my friend from Cheerios I was telling you about," Brittany gestured towards the hazel-eyed blonde behind her, "Quinn this is Santana, my gir-my friend." Brittany blushed furiously at the small slip up, but Quinn didn't seem to notice as she held out her hand to the Latina.

"Santana, I've heard so much about you," Quinn offered the brunette a friendly smile as they shook hands, "It's great to finally put a name to the face." Santana returned the smile. She liked this girl already. She was completely different to the HBIC exterior she had seen her wearing around the halls.

"You too," Santana replied, smiling warmly, before turning to Brittany, "Are you ready then?" Brittany nodded excitedly as Quinn led the way into the choir room. All eyes turned to the three girls as they entered. Quinn approached Mr Schuester and muttered something to him, before taking a seat beside a mohawked boy who was practically drooling over the two girls. Mr Schuester offered the two nervous teens a reassuring smile, before turning to the group.

"Okay guys, we have two new members joining us today!" He gestured to Brittany and Santana, "Girls, why don't you tell us a bit about yourselves?" The two girls looked nervously at each other, before Brittany stepped forward.

"Um, I'm Brittany S. Pierce," she began, addressing the club, "I'm a Cheerio and I love to dance. I like animals too and I have a cat called Lord Tubbington who likes to read my diary and eats a lot," various people sniggered at this, but it went completely unnoticed by the blonde who was happy to have gotten it over with and took a seat beside Quinn, leaving Santana standing in front of the class. She cleared her throat nervously as she began to speak.

"Hi I'm uh-I'm Santana Lopez," the Latina stuttered, clearly struggling, "Oh God, I really don't know what to say," she chuckled nervously, blushing as she looked away from the faces in front of here, "I like to sing, I guess. That's kinda it…" Santana trailed off, feeling as though she'd just made a fool of herself, she was grateful when Mr Schuester gestured for her to sit down and she plopped into the seat beside Brittany, immediately hiding her face in her hands.

"Ok girls!" Mr Schuester clapped his hands once, "Welcome to Glee Club!" The club broke into applause and Mr Schuester began the lesson. Santana was glad the attention was finally off her as the club began to chat excitedly about their recent win at Sectionals and looking forward to Regionals.

By the end of the meeting, Santana was more than ready to leave the choir room. She had enjoyed the lesson. Something about Glee Club made her feel safe. Everyone was really nice and friendly to her. They were almost like a family. There were no sleazy boys, with the exception of the mohawked boy, who Santana found out was Puck, who kept stealing glances at the Latina, but she didn't mind so much because he seemed like a bit of an idiot anyway.

As she and Brittany made there way to the door, she felt a light tap on her shoulder. She turned around to find an almost miniature girl standing in front of her. Rachel, she remembered her name was. She was the one with the amazing voice who couldn't control her tears while she had sung her latest solo at the end of the meeting.

"Hello," the small brunette smiled widely, "I'm Rachel Berry and on behalf of all of us, I would like to formally welcome both of you to Glee Club. As the most vocally experienced and talented member of the group, I just wanted to inform you that if you ever need vocal training or help with a song, I'm always willing to share my superior knowledge…" Santana slowly began to block out the increasingly annoying voice of the girl in front of her. Before she knew it, Brittany was dragging her out the door and she offered Rachel a small smile before following her girlfriend out.

Once they reached Brittany's car, the blonde turned to her girlfriend and pulled her in close by the waist, smiling gently.

"Thank you for joining Glee Club with me," she murmured, pecking the Latina on her nose, "I really think it could help you." Brittany began to lay soft kisses on her girlfriend's jaw. Santana exhaled loudly.

"I hope so," she whispered, before being pulled into the car by Brittany.

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><p><strong>Hope that chapter was okay! So I brought some new characters in here! :D Feel free to drop a review and let me know what you thought! :) Thanks for reading! :D<strong>


	8. Chapter 8

**Here's another chapter y'all! :) Unfortunately I'm back to school tomorrow so I guess I'll be pretty weighed down with homework and study from now on so I don't know if I'll have as much time to write! :/ I'll do my best to have regular updates though! For now, enjoy this chapter and please review! I miss my reviews...they help me give me motivation to write... :( :) Anywho, enjoy! :)  
><strong>

**Chapter 8**

The following Monday, Santana found herself once again sitting in Glee Club, pretending to listen to Rachel blabbing on about the next solo she would be performing. Santana, in fact, had her mind elsewhere. The previous week had gone pretty well. Brittany hadn't had any more lunchtime Cheerios practice, so Santana wasn't left alone to eat, meaning the football players mostly stayed away. She managed to avoid any close encounters with David Karofsky, who, other than leering openly at her in the halls and making crude comments under his breath as he passed, hadn't bothered her.

She and Quinn had actually become pretty close the past week. Santana discovered that any classes she didn't share with Brittany, she had with Quinn, so the two quickly bonded. They'd walk to class together, sit next to each other and just generally keep each other company. Quinn would protect her against any crude comments from boys, with snappy one-liners of her own. Santana was incredibly grateful for this because, even though she's never admit it openly, she was terrified of all those guys, scared that one day, they might do more than just stare or comment, that they might try to touch her. She knew she wouldn't be able to handle that. Luckily, with Quinn or Brittany by her side, the guys would never try anything.

Santana was also really starting to enjoy Glee Club. They met Monday, Wednesday and Friday of every week, meaning she had been to three meetings already. She was really beginning to like everyone in Glee Club, getting to know them all. Although, there was something that just simply annoyed her about Artie, the guy in the wheelchair. She'd become pretty close to Puck, the mohawked boy, too. It turned out he was a pretty decent guy, aside from all the staring he did and the fact he was a bit of an idiot.

Rachel was the one that annoyed her to no end. Sure, she had a great voice and was probably the most talented of the group, but she never, ever, EVER stopped talking. Every lesson, she would jump up at the very start and practically talk for the entire lesson, about songs, her next solo, or even just Barbra Streisand, whom she seemed to have a scary obsession with. Santana swore she had a migraine every time Rachel finally finished talking. It was exhausting.

Everything had been going fine until Brittany showed up at her locker that morning, announcing how she was inviting Quinn to stay over that Friday night. Now Santana was having a freak attack. _What if she asks questions about me? Or my family?_ Santana thought, _I can't tell her, she'd freak out. Plus, I don't even know if I can trust her? Oh my God Britt, why did you do this to me?_ Santana was snapped out of her thoughts by Mr Schuester clapping his hands sharply.

"Okay guys, now that Rachel has finished," his eyes flashed over to the small brunette, "It's time to get on to this weeks assignment. I want everyone to pick a song that best describes their feelings right now. Whether it's happiness, loneliness, anger, sadness, whatever you are feeling, just find a song and prepare it for next Monday ok?" The class mumbled "yeah" and "alright Mr Schue" as the bell signalling the end of the day, rang and they all began to shuffle out of the room, Rachel running straight to Mr Schuester to discuss song choices. Santana rolled her eyes, mentally wishing Mr Schuester good luck, as she walked out the door with here pinky intertwined with Brittany's.

xXx

Friday came sooner than Santana would have liked. She still hadn't chosen a song to sing in Glee Club and she now found herself at the Pierce's kitchen table, eating a delicious stir fry, but with Brittany and Quinn sitting across the table from her. She was incredibly nervous about the night ahead, as this was the first time she's been at a sleepover with more than just Brittany before. Although she had become close with Quinn over the past to weeks, she would have liked to keep that relationship within the school walls, only telling her things on a need to know basis. And a lot of things, she didn't need to know.

After dinner, Mrs Pierce announced that she was going to a get together with her friends and the girls were left alone after promising to behave. After sitting in silence in the sitting room for the most of ten minutes, they decided they'd better actually do something.

"Why don't we play 'I Never'?" Quinn suggested, shrugging lightly. Santana rolled her eyes but bit back a remark as she saw the look of excitement on Brittany's face. Keeping her mouth shut, Santana hopped up and grabbed a bottle of vodka from the liquor cabinet and some shot glasses. Seeing Quinn eyeing her she explained,

"If we're gonna play this, we're gonna do it right!" Santana plopped back on the floor quickly, pouring them all a shot, "I'll start! I never stole my mom's car," Quinn sulkily downed her shot, Santana smirking, Brittany informed her of that drunken night after a party.

"I never kicked something and broke it!" Brittany exclaimed, watching as the other two drank their shots.

"I never saw a leprechaun," Quinn said lamely, eyes widening as Brittany downed her first shot. The game went on for another twenty minutes, each of Quinn's suggestions being worse than the next, but Santana found herself getting a bit drunk after drinking to almost every one and they were now onto their second bottle of vodka.

"God, Quinn! You really do suck at this game!" Santana practically yelled, feeling the alcohol start to really get to her. Quinn scoffed, but gave in.

"Fine!" The blonde yelled back, "I never kissed a girl when it wasn't to impress guys," The two other girls downed their shots quickly, not daring to look anywhere but the floor. Quinn eyed them suspiciously but just put it down to coincidence that they both drank for that one.

"I never skipped school when I wasn't sick," Santana joked, hoping to relieve the tension that was growing, succeeding when all three girls took a drink.

"I never got in a fight at school!" Brittany yelled, unable to control her laughter as the other two drank.

"I never got beaten up!" Quinn exclaimed, wanting to continue along the same line. Santana's smile immediately dropped and Brittany stole a nervous glance at the Latina, neither of these actions going unnoticed by the smaller blonde. Santana lifted the drink to her lips slowly, fighting back the tears that were threatening to spill over as she took the shot. Quinn could sense there was something the other two girls weren't telling her, something was wrong, and she wanted to know what it was. "I never-"

"Stop," Santana murmured quietly, anger beginning to boil beneath the surface. She could see what Quinn was trying to do. The blonde looked sceptically at her and she couldn't hold it in any more, mistaking it for nosiness she yelled, "Just stop it! What's the next one gonna be Quinn?" she jumped up, tears beginning to fall now, although that could have been from the alcohol, "I never felt unloved? I never ran away, not caring where I was going as long as it wasn't home? I never cried myself to sleep every night, wishing it was me instead? Blaming myself?" she jumped up from her position on the floor, becoming even more angered at the look of shock on the small blonde's face, "Because, guess what, Quinn? I would be drinking to every one of those! Each and every one of those things is true! At least now you know without me having to get any more drunk!" she screamed, turning and racing to the bathroom, locking the door behind her before either of the other two could react.

The Latina bent over the sink in the bathroom, struggling to control her breathing and the tears that refused to stop falling. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the light hitting off something. Looking toward it, she saw the glinting, sharp edge of a brand new razor. It would be so easy at that moment, to rid herself of the pain.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the beeping of her phone. She tore her eyes away from the tempting sight in front of her and looked at her phone, seeing one new message.

**Your father is awake**

Santana's heart stopped. He had survived. He was awake and he was going to get her. She flung the phone as far away as possible from her as she sank to the floor, back against the wall, barely comprehending it smashing into pieces as she descended into tears.

* * *

><p><strong>Any thoughts? Anything you'd like to see in the next few chapters? Please let me know in a review! It would make my life! :)<strong>


	9. Chapter 9

**Hey everyone! Here's chapter 9! :D Thanks very much for all the suggstions and I hope to use a few in upcoming chapters! For now enjoy this one and please, please review! Proper drama coming up soon I promise! :)  
><strong>

**Chapter 9**

Santana slammed her locker door shut, glancing around the bustling hallways furtively, looking for a particular blonde headed Cheerio. Not spotting her, she sighed loudly, leaning her head against the lockers. It had been a long weekend. Right now she just wanted a hole to form in the ground and she wanted to be sucked into it. She had expected the weekend to be hard, but it had turned out to be a complete and utter disaster.

The Latina looked around the hallways, at all of the students, bustling around, not a care in the world, other than what their next class could be. Not her. At this point she didn't really care what class she had, she just desperately wanted to avoid the head cheerleader, as she had been doing for quite a while, and also try not to think about the fact that the man who had made her life a living hell for the past eight years, was now awake and she no longer felt that sense of security that she had been getting at Brittany's since the accident.

Not to mention all the stupid footballers. Santana wasn't sure what had happened over the weekend but suddenly all the guys were a lot more daring. What used to be open leering or crude comments, had now turned into whistling and constant attempts at touching her. One idiot had even slapped her ass as she walked down the hallway that morning, before wishing that he hadn't and probably becoming infertile after a well rounded kick that Santana was more than happy to deliver.

Although Santana was happy with how she had handled that particular situation, she knew that things would probably only get worse from here on, and that was the last thing she needed right now. All she needed was herself and Brittany. She didn't need her parents, she didn't need boys and, hell, she _definitely_ didn't need Quinn, despite what the blonde thinks.

* * *

><p>"<em>San please! Just come out so we can talk about this," Brittany called, trying to keep her voice level, not wishing to startle the Latina on the other side of the door. Quinn stood beside her, looking confused and more than a little concerned. She had absolutely no idea what had just happened. They were just having a friendly game of 'I Never' when the Latina completely blew up at here. Something was going on with the brunette and she was genuinely concerned. The two girls hadn't known each other very long, but Quinn had come to care for the Latina and felt that they had become pretty close friends. She wanted to help her.<em>

"_I don't want to talk about it," Santana mumbled, not even sure if the blonde on the other side of the door could hear her. She hadn't managed to quell the tears that had been falling from her eyes for the past half an hour, since she had locked herself in this bathroom. Her phone lay idle on the floor across the room. She dare not check it again after receiving a dozen more messages, no doubt from her mother, asking her to come to the hospital or informing her of how wrong being with Brittany was._

_She hadn't moved from her spot on the floor since she had gotten the first message, allowing the realisation of what had just happened to sink in. She had practically told Quinn, a girl she met two weeks ago, her whole life story, barely withholding the major details, which the blonde would, no doubt, now want to know._

_Santana slammed her fist on the floor, cursing herself for being so stupid. She heard quiet voices on the other side of the door, before Brittany spoke once more,_

"_Santana," she spoke so softly, Santana almost missed it, what with her brain still in overdrive and fighting to control her tears, "Please, _please _just unlock the door. Quinn's gone to the kitchen to make us some hot chocolate. It's just me out here," she sighed heavily, "Please just let me in so we can talk about this." _

_Santana sniffed loudly, weighing up her options, "Please Britt, I can't". She felt the tears begin to fall again and it took all her willpower to keep them under control._

"_I just want to help you," Brittany whispered, but Santana heard it. The Latina was a stubborn person, but she knew how much it meant to Brittany that she was the one that she could trust with anything. And she had to admit, it was important for her too. She needed Brittany, her best friend above all else. Standing up slowly, she unlocked the door and pulled it back, allowing herself to be enveloped in a bone crushing hug by the blue eyed blonde in front of her. _

"_I'm so sorry Britt," Santana sobbed into the blonde's shoulder, all her emotions getting the best of her as she stood in the tight embrace. Brittany held her girlfriend as she cried her heart out, rubbing small circles on her back and whispering comforting words into her ear until she had calmed down enough to pull away. "I shouldn't have freaked out like that. It's just I-I can't tell her. I can't-He'll-I" Santana stuttered._

"_Ssh, it's okay," Brittany chided, placing a finger over her girlfriend's lips, silencing her, "I know, honey. And it's okay, you don't have to tell anyone anything if you don't want to," Brittany smiled softly at Santana's grateful expression, "Just come to the kitchen, have your hot chocolate, maybe apologise to Quinn for shouting at her and just try to get through the rest of the sleepover okay?" Santana opened her mouth to say something but was silenced once more, "_Okay?_" Brittany raised her eyebrows, smiling in satisfaction as Santana nodded. "Okay, let's go," Brittany led the way down the hall, holding Santana's hand tightly until they reached the doorway to the kitchen. _

_Santana took a seat at the island in the middle of the kitchen, not meeting the concerned gaze of the smaller blonde who was standing on the other side of the kitchen. Quinn approached the Latina cautiously, placing the steaming cup of hot chocolate on the table and placing her hand gently on Santana's, gazing sympathetically at her. The blonde opened her mouth to speak but was quickly cut off._

"_I don't wanna talk about it," Santana muttered quietly but firmly, not removing her gaze from the table which she had been staring at for the past few moments._

"_But Santana, I-"_

"_I _don't _wanna talk about it," Santana cut her off once again, with more force this time, looking up from the table and looking straight at Quinn. Brittany looked sympathetically between the two girls and the tension between them, before deciding to step in._

"_Look, Quinn," Brittany began, immediately gaining the attention of the smaller blonde, who was looking slightly hurt but, more than that, she looked incredibly concerned, "It's been a long day and I think we're all tired. I think it would be best if we all headed to bed, okay?" Quinn nodded her head silently, averting her gaze to the floor, "Great, the guest room is just down the hall to the right." Quinn nodded once more, before mumbling her goodnights and retreating to her bedroom. _

_Brittany approached the Latina, who had returned he__r gaze to the table. The blonde turned her girlfriend's face towards her, immediately noticing the large tears in her eyes. Wordlessly, Brittany grabbed her girlfriend's hand and let her into the sitting room, where they lay down on Santana's bed. Santana scooted close to the blonde, laying her head on her chest._

"_Thank you so much Britt," Santana whispered, her voice cracking slightly under the weight of the past hour, "I love you." Brittany smiled at the words, she always did. Running her hands through her girlfriend's hair softly, she kissed the top of the brunette's head._

"_I love you too."_

* * *

><p>Santana was brought out of her thoughts by a soft nudge. She turned her head to see her girlfriend beside her, looking seriously at her. She then took in her surroundings; she was in her Spanish classroom. She must have walked there and sat down beside Brittany without even noticing, she was too caught up in her own head. Now, as she looked around, she noticed everyone staring at her, including the teacher, and concluded that she must have asked her a question. Santana paused a moment before shrugging her shoulders timidly.<p>

"Santana, I would appreciate it if you would stop daydreaming and please pay attention in class!" The teacher huffed loudly, before turning back to the board and continuing the lesson, which Santana immediately tuned out of as Brittany nudged her again. Santana turned to her and was met with a concerned face. Santana simply smiled gently at her to ease her concerns, and Brittany seemed to accept this as she turned back towards the teacher to pretend to listen.

The truth was that Santana only smiled at Brittany because she wasn't really talking to her. The rest of the weekend had been awkward, with Quinn leaving early Saturday morning, as requested by Brittany to avoid any more tension, and Santana had pretty much been silent the rest of the weekend. She would speak no more than three words at a time to Brittany and would only speak when spoken to. She's stayed in all day Sunday, just watching TV and hadn't even joined Brittany on a trip to the mall. Brittany hadn't really minded and had just put it down to the fact that Santana was feeling under the weather, but the truth was that Santana just couldn't bring herself to speak to anyone. After her slip up on Friday, she didn't really trust herself to have a normal conversation with anyone, even Brittany who pretty much knew everything about her.

All day in school she'd been quiet, still not speaking more than a few words at a time, even to the boys who'd try to start a conversation. She had been trying desperately to avoid Quinn and had been lucky enough to have only met her once all day, that meeting being in the bathroom, where she made a quick exit before the blonde could ask any questions.

As the bell rang, Santana was filled with dread. It was now time for Glee, which meant being in an enclosed space with the blonde she was trying to avoid. She entered the choir room, Brittany beside her, babbling on about her cat, but Santana wasn't even listening, glancing around the room and locking eyes with the head cheerleader for a moment, before taking her seat on the opposite side of the room.

Quinn immediately approached her, sitting down beside her. Santana tried her best to ignore the blonde, but her eyes were boring holes into her.

"What?" Santana snapped, turning sharply towards the blonde, catching her slightly off guard. Quickly composing herself, Quinn leaned in closer, knowing Santana wouldn't want others to hear their conversation.

"I want to help you, you know," Quinn whispered, "I know we haven't known each other long, but just so you know, you can trust me." Santana rolled her eyes.

"Well thanks, Q, that's great to know," Santana spat sarcastically, "But not everything's about you, okay? This is none of your fucking business so back off!" The Latina stood up quickly, striding across the room and sitting beside Tina, folding her arms across her chest and sitting in silence, a permanent scowl present on her face.

Quinn looked at Brittany, stunned. For the second time in three days, Santana had completely lost it with her. And rather than putting the blonde off, all these outbursts were only making her more concerned. Quinn watched Mr Schuester striding into the room, looking as happy as ever, and she promised herself she'd get to the bottom of this.

* * *

><p><strong>Thoughts? Please review! Thanks for reading! :)<strong>


	10. Chapter 10

**Ok y'all another chapter! Thanks to all sticking with this! A bit of angst and drama in this chapter! Hope you enjoy and please please review! :)  
><strong>

**Chapter 10**

Santana flopped into her seat at the back of the choir room, beside Brittany and far, far away from Quinn. It was Friday evening and Santana could not have been more relieved about the impending weekend. Her week had been pretty awful. What with fending off obnoxious boys, listening to the other members pour their hearts out in Glee for the 'Feelings' assignment and doing everything in her power to avoid Quinn and her concerned looks and never-ending questions, all the Latina wanted to do was retreat to her bed. Unfortunately, all the Glee members apart from herself and Kurt had performed their numbers, meaning she would be singing today.

Kurt offered to go first, singing some boring show-tune about how in love he was. Apparently he was dating some kid from a rivalling show choir. Santana completely zoned out during the boy's performance, groaning inwardly as she felt here phone vibrate in her pocket. As she pulled it out, she cringed at her mother's name on the screen showing one new message.

Maria had been texting her daughter constantly since her father had woken up. At first the messages had been fairly mild, with Maria asking Santana to come down to the hospital or calmly suggesting the Latina break up with Brittany and come home to be 'fixed'. Over the past day or so though, the texts had started to get a bit out of control, with messages every hour or so. Santana had begun to ignore the texts, not bothering to reply, and this obviously annoyed Maria to no end and she began to send hateful messages to her daughter. The latest one read:

**We both know it's a lie. She doesn't love you. The sooner you accept that the better. Come home to the only people who will ever truly love you. You don't want to be alone for the rest of your life.**

Santana scoffed at her mother's message. This was a fairly mild one compared to some of the others she had received, which Santana had no doubt it was her father writing them. This one at least seemed like it was mostly coming from her mother. In a way, Santana was glad she received the text now, it made her even more riled up to sing her song. Kurt finished his solo and Santana clapped politely along with the others.

"Ok Santana," Mr Schuester turned to her smiling gently, "You're up!" Santana stood up slowly, making her way to the front of the room. All eyes were on her as she nodded towards Brad, the pianist, who began to play the opening of her song and the music filled the choir room. With a quick glance towards Brittany, Santana opened her mouth and began to sing.

_Listen to the song here in my heart  
>A melody I start but can't complete<br>Listen to the sound from deep within  
>It's only beginning to find release<em>

Oh, the time has come for my dreams to be heard  
>They will not be pushed aside and turned<br>Into your own all 'cause you won't  
>Listen<p>

Santana dared not make eye contact with anyone in the room as she continued the performance, staring off into nothingness.

_Listen, I am alone at a crossroads  
>I'm not at home in my own home<br>And I've tried and tried to say what's on mind  
>You should have known<em>

Oh, now I'm done believing you  
>You don't know what I'm feeling<br>I'm more than what you made of me  
>I followed the voice you gave to me<br>But now I've gotta find my own

Most of the Glee Club members were at this point beginning to feel a bit bewildered at the Latina's choice of song. Brittany however, was staring, transfixed at her girlfriend, listening intently to the Latina's beautiful voice and the strong emotions she was conveying through the lyrics. Brittany was the only one who understood.

_You should have listened, there is someone here inside  
>Someone I thought had died so long ago<br>Oh, I'm screaming out and my dreams'll be heard  
>They will not be pushed aside on words<br>Into your own all 'cause you won't  
>Listen<em>

Quinn was also staring intently at Santana, trying to figure out exactly what the brunette was trying to say. The blonde couldn't help but feel that this song had something to do with whatever was weighing the Latina down and Quinn felt as though Santana was really opening up to everyone, if only she could figure out exactly what it was she was opening up about.

_Listen, I am alone at a crossroads  
>I'm not at home in my own home<br>And I've tried and tried to say what's on mind  
>You should have known<em>

Oh, now I'm done believing you  
>You don't know what I'm feeling<br>I'm more than what you made of me  
>I followed the voice you gave to me<br>But now I've gotta find my own

Santana squeezed her eyes shut tightly, desperately trying to hold in the tears that were threatening to fall. She knew that the entire Glee Club was probably beyond confused right now but she didn't care. This wasn't about the Glee Club. She wasn't doing this for them, she was doing this for her, she _needed _to sing this song, this was how she was feeling.

_I don't know where I belong  
>But I'll be moving on<br>If you don't, if you won't_

Listen to the song here in my heart  
>A melody I start but I will complete<p>

Oh, now I'm done believing you  
>You don't know what I'm feeling<br>I'm more than what you made of me  
>I followed the voice you think you gave to me<br>But now I've gotta find my own, my own

Santana felt a solitary tear slide down her face as the song came to an end. Unsure applause rang through the room as Santana opened her eyes and rushed to wipe the moisture off her face as she returned to her seat. Brittany placed a comforting hand on Santana's arm as Mr. Schuester stood up, looking as bewildered as most of his students.

"Well Santana, that was…um…that was a great performance," Mr. Schue smiled awkwardly at the Latina, who was still trying to control her tears and crossing her arms over her chest, "Well done!" The bell rang as Mr. Schue finished speaking and the kids began to trudge out the door. Brittany turned to Santana.

"You ready to go, sweetie?" Brittany whispered, with a small smile playing at her lips. Santana sighed heavily, not meeting Brittany's eyes.

"Look, B," Santana began, "I feel like walking home alone today is that okay?" Santana looked at Brittany, watching as her smile fell slightly, "I just need some alone time, I'll meet you at home?" Santana added swiftly, hating to disappoint Brittany. She couldn't help but feel relieved as the blonde smiled widely once again.

"Okay, S" she said, nodding furiously, "I'll see you at home!" she called over her shoulder, before bounding out of the choir room, leaving Santana alone. The Latina exhaled loudly, before picking up her bag and heading out of the room towards her locker.

As Santana began placing her books into her locker, she heard distant voices. She felt a pang of fear as she remembered that some of the football players liked to stay back in the gym after school. Santana immediately began to speed up, frantically flinging her remaining books into her locker and slamming the door. She picked up her bag, whirling around swiftly, desperate to get out of the building as quickly as possible, and clashed head first into a large body, falling back slightly, taken by surprise.

Santana looked up fearfully, already beginning to shake with fear, and was met with the smiling face of Dave Karofsky. Santana rolled her eyes and put on a brave face, trying to step around the boy. He reacted quickly though, and stepped in front of her.

"Whoa, babe, what's the rush?" Karofsky smiled innocently, visibly checking out the small Latina, "I just wanna talk." Santana scoffed.

"Yeah, well I don't wanna talk to you so be a good little boy and fuck off!" Santana spat sarcastically, attempting once again to step around the boy, but being blocked off again. Santana's comments didn't seem to deter the boy, and he only stepped closer into Santana's personal space. The Latina found herself shaking uncontrollably and prayed the footballer didn't notice. No such luck.

"You cold, babe? You're shaking. Let me help with that." Karofsky attempted to pull Santana into a rough bear hug with his huge arms, eliciting a sharp intake of breath from the, now terrified, Latina, as she struggled to push him away from her.

"Get off me!" she cried, trying desperately to remove his arms, failing miserably as Karofsky held her tighter, chuckling lightly at the girl's futile efforts. Santana was really beginning to panic now, as the huge footballer pushed her up against the lockers and held her down forcefully. Santana could feel herself losing control.

"I said get off me!" she shrieked, screaming as the boy leaned in to kiss her. Suddenly, Santana heard footsteps and, caught off guard, Karofsky was thrown off her. Santana immediately fled to the bathroom, tears streaming down her face and shaking uncontrollably, she didn't even bother to turn around to check who her savior was. She burst into the bathroom, immediately locking herself into a stall and collapsing onto the ground, emotionally and physically overwhelmed.

A few minutes later, she heard the bathroom door open and close and quiet footsteps on the other side of the door. Santana wiped her eyes quickly, trying and failing to stifle her sobs.

"Santana?"

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><p><strong>A nice little cliffhanger for you! :) What did everyone think? Please let me know in a review! They motivate me to write!:D Thanks for reading! :)<strong>


	11. Chapter 11

**Hey guys...Sorry for the delay with this chapter..Ive been really struggling with real life recently and i guess this wasn't top of my priorities list! Anywho enough about me..Enjoy the chapter and please review! :)  
><strong>

**Chapter 11**

"Santana?"

Santana held her breath, trying to stifle her sobs, but only succeeding in hiccupping loudly. Throwing her hand over her mouth, she tried to stay as silent as possible as she listened to the person come further into the bathroom.

"Santana?" The Latina knew that voice, "I know you're in here Santana. Come on I just wanna talk." Santana couldn't stop another sob escaping as silent tears streamed down her face. She saw feet appear on the other side of the door, and a soft knock followed. "Santana please let me in. I want to help you." Santana let the words sink in. Somebody wanted to help her, to take care of her. Maybe this was just what Santana needed, especially after what had just happened in the hallway. Who was to say it wouldn't happen again? Santana sniffed loudly and reached up slowly and unlocked the door.

She looked up as it opened and was met with the head cheerleader, standing over her with a sad smile. Santana took one look at her and broke down into uncontrollable sobs once more. Quinn immediately dropped to her knees, pulling Santana into a strong embrace. They stayed there for what must have been half an hour, Santana weeping and Quinn trying desperately to comfort her while her own heart was breaking at the sight of her friend. Finally, Santana managed to control her sobs enough to choke out,

"Thank you, Quinn," The blonde Cheerio looked quizzically at the Latina, "For getting him off me…" Santana could feel fresh tears rising again at the mention of the incident, but managed to quell them as Quinn spoke.

"Don't worry about it, San," Quinn smiled softly, "He was obviously hurting you. It's what any friend would do." Santana couldn't help the small smile that crept onto her face at the mention of 'friend', it felt great to have someone else there for her, "And as a _friend_, I want you to tell me what's going on, San," the brunette's face immediately dropped, "I want you to trust me. You know you can." Quinn looked straight into the Latina's eyes, willing the answer out of her.

Santana was facing an internal struggle. She barely knew Quinn, had only met her a month ago. How was she supposed to know whether she could trust her or not? On the other hand, Quinn had been nothing but sweet and loyal to her since they had gotten to know each other. It would be great to have someone else to rely on, someone who genuinely wanted to help, and it wasn't fair to let Brittany deal with all of her problems.

"I…" Santana choked out. It had been so much easier to think about it, rather than try to say it out loud, "My dad…he…" The Latina felt moisture on her face again. It hadn't even been this hard to tell Brittany.

"San, what is it?" Quinn pushed gently, "Come on, let me help." The blonde put a comforting hand on the tanned girls arm, looking worriedly at the other girl. Santana cleared her throat gently, forcing the words out.

"He hits me," Santana heard the blonde take a sharp intake of breath, so she averted her eyes to the floor, knowing she wouldn't be able to continue if she looked at the cheerleader, "He's been hitting me for years, ever since my sister died eight years ago," another gasp, "I couldn't make him stop…" Santana trailed off, letting the tears consume her once more and collapsing into the blonde, who was left speechless, absentmindedly stroking the Latina's hair as she let all the tears fall.

Quinn didn't know how to feel about this confession from the brunette. Obviously, this was probably the worst situation imaginable. Ever since Santana had first blown up at her at Brittany's, the blonde had been racking her brain night and day, trying to figure out what was wring with the girl. And even with all her internal debating, she could never have pictured this. The Latina had obviously become an expert at covering up her feelings, fear and the marks he no doubt had left. Quinn had never even noticed any to be honest. Although, now that she thought about it, the brunette did seem to wear abnormally heavy clothes some days to school.

"Thank you for telling me, San," Quinn whispered to the Latina, "I can help you now." She felt the brunette nod slightly as she pulled her closer, feeling her own hot tears on her face.

xXx

Quinn pushed open the bathroom door leading to the hallway with her free hand, keeping her other safely around Santana's shoulders. The girl had managed to control her tears but was still sniffing miserably and couldn't stop shaking. Quinn led the Latina towards the main door of the building.

As they passed the football locker rooms, they heard a familiar voice.

"Hey Lopez!" Santana jumped about two feet in the air, and suddenly tried to dash from Quinn's arms as she realised who the voice belonged to. Quinn barely managed to restrain the terrified Latina and continued to lead her towards the door as Karofsky continued, "Can't wait for round two!" The huge football player laughed loudly at the death glare thrown his way by the blonde and turned to high five some of his team-mates. Quinn picked up her pace as they neared the door and burst out into the brightly lit evening. She made a beeline for her car, guiding Santana to the passenger side and then hopping in behind the wheel. Shooting off a quick explanatory text to Brittany, she pulled out of McKinley.

The car journey was pretty much silent other than the occasional sniffle from Santana who was huddled against the door of the car, looking dejectedly out the window. Quinn couldn't help but feel for the girl as she took in the mess that sat beside her. Make up running down her face, hair mussed up and curled into a ball on the seat, Santana looked somewhat like a child who had just seen a monster. Quinn knew that this was so much more than that. Karofsky had been very close to Santana and this had obviously brought back painful memories to the Latina. Who knows what would have happened to her if Quinn hadn't been in the right place at the right time.

Quinn sighed loudly as she pulled the car into her driveway and shut off the engine. Santana showed no sign of moving, so the blonde unbuckled the girl's seatbelt gently and stepped out of the car and around to her door, pulling it open and helping the non-responsive Latina out and through her front door.

Quinn led the brunette up the stairs to the guest bedroom and, without a word, pulled back the covers on the bed and helped Santana in, not even bothering to try undressing her, unsure of what her reaction would be. Santana pulled the covers around her shoulders and turned away from the blonde silently. Quinn got the hint and exited the room, shutting the door softly behind her.

As she emerged onto the hallway, she felt her phone vibrate. Pulling it out, she read the new message from Brittany:

**OMG is she okay? Should I come over?**

Quinn couldn't help but smile at Brittany's desire to help.

**No don't worry B. I got this. She isn't in the mood for talking right now anyway. I'll drop her over later.**

Quinn shut her phone, slipping it into her pocket as she made her way down the stairs and into the sitting room. Flopping down onto the couch, she pulled her knees up to her chest and began to cry.

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><p><strong>Sorry about the shitness of this chapter but honestly it took a lot for me to sit down and write again.. : Anyway please review and let me know what you thought! :)**


	12. Chapter 12

**Hey everyone! Okay I just wanted to say how truly sorry I am for the delay on the next chapter! I have so much schizzel going on in my life right now that honestly, I don't have the time nor the motivation to do any writing… :/**

**I don't know when I'll feel ready to write again so please be patient with me! I hope to have a new chapter up soon so bear with me! It'll be worth it! **

**Okay well that's it! If anyone has any questions or suggestions let me know! Hopefully will speak to you soon! **

**Apologies again!**

**Laura xxx**


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